Boehner gets into War Powers Act

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) warned President Barack Obama on Tuesday that he’ll be in violation of the War Powers Act if he doesn’t seek authorization for the Libya mission this week, but Boehner has questioned the law’s constitutionality in the past and even voted to repeal the law back in 1995.

“The president of the United States is, and should remain, the chief architect of America’s foreign policy and the commander-in-chief of our armed forces,” Boehner said in a 1999 press release when Congress was debating U.S. involvement in the Balkans. “Invoking the constitutionally-suspect War Powers Act may halt our nation s snowballing involvement in the Kosovo quagmire. But it’s also likely to tie the hands of future presidents … A strong presidency is a key pillar of the American system of government — the same system of government our military men and women are prepared to give their lives to defend. Just as good intentions alone are not enough to justify sending American troops into harm’s way, good intentions alone are not enough to justify tampering with the underpinnings of American democracy.”

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In addition to his pretty clear remarks, Boehner voted in 1995 to repeal the War Powers Act and replace it with a weaker mandate for Congress to have a role in the war-making process.

But now Boehner has to contend with a Republican Conference that is highly skeptical of the U.S. mission in Libya and the constraints of the role of the speaker, who is expected to defend the laws of past Congresses just like he would hope future speakers would defend those of the current Congress.

“The War Powers Act is the law of the land until Congress or the courts say otherwise,” Boehner spokesman Michael Steel told POLITICO.

In his Tuesday letter to Obama, Boehner said that the president will be in violation of the War Powers Act if he doesn’t either withdraw U.S. forces from the Libya mission or get authorization for the action from Congress by the end of the week, when it will have been 90 days since the engagement began.

“You took an oath before the American people on January 20, 2009 in which you swore to “faithfully execute the Office of President’ and to ‘preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.’ The Constitution requires the President to ‘take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed,’ and one of those laws is the War Powers Resolution, which requires an approving action by Congress or withdrawal within 90 days from the notification of a military operation,” Boehner wrote. “I sincerely hope the administration will faithfully comply with the War Powers Resolution and the requests made by the House of Representatives, and that you will use your unique authority as our President to engage the American people regarding our mission in Libya.”

In Boehner’s reading, there are two interpretations for the president’s decision not to seek congressional approval for U.S. involvement in Libya.

“Given the mission you have ordered to the U.S. Armed Forces with respect to Libya and the text of the War Powers Resolution, the House is left to conclude that you have made one of two determinations: either you have concluded the War Powers Resolution does not apply to the mission in Libya, or you have determined the War Powers Resolution is contrary to the Constitution.”

A Boehner spokesman said the speaker’s personal views and past statements don’t undermine the need to enforce the law.

“Regardless of his personal views, the speaker took an oath to uphold and defend the Constitution,” Steel said. “He has an institutional obligation to enforce the laws of the land – all of them – and protect the important role Congress plays in our national security policy. He is fulfilling his duty to Congress and the American people, and – thus far – the White House has not done the same.”